POULTRYINDONESIA, Jakarta — Egg prices at the farm level have recently plunged below the government’s official benchmark price. In response to the situation, several ministries and institutions immediately held a joint meeting on Tuesday (12/5/2026) at the Ministry of Agriculture office in Jakarta.

The meeting was attended by representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture, the National Food Agency (Bapanas), the National Nutrition Agency (BGN), livestock farmer associations, and poultry industry stakeholders.

Director General of Livestock and Animal Health at the Ministry of Agriculture, Agung Suganda, stated that the government could not allow egg prices to continue falling. According to him, cooperatives and poultry farmer associations have agreed to push prices back toward the producer reference price set by Bapanas at Rp26,500 per kilogram.

Agung emphasized that Minister of Agriculture and Head of Bapanas, Andi Amran Sulaiman, had instructed that price corrections be implemented immediately, starting as early as the following day.

“Tomorrow we expect farmgate prices to begin rising toward the reference price. The Food Task Force and the Price Stabilization Task Force will also be deployed to directly monitor conditions in the field,” Agung said.

Ironically, this situation comes at a time when national egg production is in excellent condition. In 2026, Indonesia’s egg production is projected to reach 7.3 million tons, far exceeding national demand of around 6.4 million tons.

The surge in production has been driven by the emergence of new farmers attracted by opportunities from the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) Program. As a result, egg availability has increased by up to 30 percent compared to the previous year.

Deputy for Food Availability and Stabilization at Bapanas, I Gusti Ketut Astawa, said the government would soon issue a circular mandating egg purchases at producer level prices in line with the established benchmark.

“In addition, the distribution chain will be tightened so that middlemen can no longer suppress prices at the farm level. These middlemen must be regulated so that situations like this do not continue to recur,” he stressed.

The government is also preparing feed corn supplies as additional support for smallholder farmers.

Another measure comes from BGN, where Brigadier General (Ret.) Suardi Samiran emphasized that every Nutrition Fulfillment Service Unit (SPPG) or MBG kitchen must purchase eggs from farmers in surrounding areas.

Farmers have welcomed the government’s quick response. Chairman of GOPAN, Herry Dermawan, stated that current prices do not reflect actual market conditions, as egg prices are highly vulnerable to market rumors and speculation.

Meanwhile, Musbar Mesdi, Chairman of the National Layer Farmers Association (PLN), expressed hope that egg absorption through the MBG program would continue to increase. He also urged that egg prices should no longer fall below Rp25,000 per kilogram in the future.

Get more information about Indonesia’s poultry industry by joining the Poultry Indonesia WhatsApp Channel.